1987.08.DD - Endless Party Magazine - It's A Jungle Out There!

Varla DeVil wrote:IT'S A JUNGLE OUT THERE! SWINGIN' WITH GUNS & ROSES

Over the last couple of years I watched Guns & Roses work their way from playing small clubs, parties etc. to playing large clubs, parties etc. Seriously, these guys have worked hard to get where they are and play honest from the gut whup you upside the head rock n' roll... don't let anyone tell you different.

Their new album "Appetite for Destruction" on Geffen is an amazing first effort from the home boys... no compromise. The first single, "Welcome to the Jungle," pretty much sums up the whole outlook… life can be hell so you better burn brighter. Speaking of burning, Guns & Roses are touring with the Cult in Europe and possibly following that with an Aerosmith tour.

So best of luck to the band and BUY THE FUCKING RECORD... you won't be sorry.

INTERVIEW BY VARLA DeVIL

Endless Party: What's going on between you and Zodiac Mindwarp?

Duff: You know Mike Clink is mixing their record, did you hear a story that there was animosity?

E.P.: Between Slash and Colbalt?

Duff: That got blown out of proportion. It was at the Limelight in London and Slash was talking to Colblat's girlfriend. Colblat came up jokingly and Colblat knew who Slash was, knew we were there. Jokingly just barely twisted his arm around his back. Slash turned around going what the fuck? and then realized what was going on and Slash didn't know she was his girlfriend. They shook hands and talked with them all night, they invited us down to the studio. That was it, that's the whole story.

E.P.: What happened with the Robert Williams album cover?

Izzy: It's out, we got a few letters.

Duff: Just on the album, not the tape or C.D. We got some complaints from people, organizations, as well as David Geffen. So we put out 30,000 of those, which is cool cause it'll be kinds like a collectors item, after that it's gonna be the same cross as the tape which is the cross tattoo with the skull heads on it.

E.P.: Axl's tattoo?

Duff: Exactly.

E.P.: The band has been signed to Geffen for a year and finally you put out the "Live Like A Suicide" EP. Why did it take so long?

Izzy: We got sidetracked.

Duff: We were just trying to find a producer and we couldn't find anyone we could fucking work with.

Izzy: We kept meeting all these schmuckos, for example this famous rock star, I won't name any names, he just wanted to change the music. Like, "Don't Cry," they wanted to change the chorus and everything... we were just saying 'fuck off.'

Duff: And Stevie's claim to fame at the time was that he had no tom toms, except for a floor tom tom, he had the simplest kit in town...snare drum, floor tom tom...kinda like the Cramps set, you know. The first thing this guy says, this famous rock star, he goes "You need tom toms, you need this, etc..."

E.P.: What else is coming up?

Izzy: We're gonna do this States tour.

Duff: Then we're going back to Europe. We were gonna go with Aerosmith but they cancelled the tour cause I don't think their album's gonna be coming out for a while.

E.P.: I heard the album was great.

Duff: I just listened to it. I fucking love it. Anyhow, we're actually doing so well in Europe that we're going on our own headlining tour there.

E.P.: How did you like England?

Duff: Bars close too early, they drive on the wrong side of the street, they talk funny.

Izzy: Great hash.

Duff: The gigs were great. We played three gigs at the Marquee and they were all sold out. Kids line up at three in the afternoon, like two streets down. We'd walk up and all these kids knew who we were just by sight. There's really no rock n' roll over there, so we got there and the kids were just waiting and waiting. All the old Hanoi Rocks fans. There's the fans there, but there's just no bands. The kids are looking for a band they can all cling on to. We hung out with Motorhead in England, went to the recording studio and got just fucking wasted with Lemmy one night. He showed me all bass gear; he asked me what I play and I told him; he goes "Fuck that! You gotta have one of these Marshalls you crank everything, crank the bass down to zero." His Rickenbacker is like a bow and arrow, he goes "It's a little bit out of intonation."

E.P.: Did you get into any trouble in England?

Duff: We got thrown out of a few clubs.

E.P.: That's nothing new, right?

Duff: Takes us to England, all together, all at once...when all five of us get together and go somewhere we can fuck up things and we do...we can't help it, it just happens.

E.P.: Why didn't you do any covers on this album?

Duff: It's our first album, we wanted to prove ourselves first.

Izzy: Plus we had so many songs.

(This is where Slosh and Axl show up.)

Slash: Will you do me one big favor? Put in that whoever it was that stole my jacket last night...when I find them I am gonna kick the fucking shit out of them.

Izzy: It's cursed, out in that it has a satanic curse on it...they're gonna have the worst luck.

E.P.: Why was Rick Rubin checking you guys out?

Slash: He wanted us to do a song for a movie that he's coming out with...plus he is a cool guy, we hang out and shit.

E.P.: So you've a long way since I remember you from a year and a half ago, but I always knew you would make it.

Slash: So do you like the record, cause I remember what you wrote about the other one.

E.P.: What can you expect...everyone waited a year for the record to come out.

Axl: You oughto hear what we're releasing right now...we're releasing three live tracks from the Marquee that are fucking solid noise.

Slash: 'It's So Easy', it's like a...

Axl: Car crash.

Slash: He's so fucking noisy, out of tune, it's just great! "Whole Lotta Rosie"'s coming out, and "Heaven's Door."

E.P.: How do radio stations feel about all the language?

Izzy: Fuck, piss and shit? It doesn't really matter cause the songs that we're actually releasing as singles don't have any obscenities.

E. P.: What is the video you've been working on?

Axl: "Welcome to the Jungle."

E. P.: What is the concept?

Axl: We're gonna have lion suits, you know...something new, we're gonna have jungle women.

Izzy: Like Tarzan, get it, welcome to the jungle....really original, heavy concept.

Slash: We're looking for someone to be Jane, do you wanna be Jane?

E.P.: I am sure you have enough applicants, thank you. What about the older covers you used to do, like "Heartbreak Hotel" or "Jumpin Jack Flash"?

Axl: We've recorded "Jack Flash" tonight acoustically.

E.P.: What is this for?

Axl: We're releasing the live stuff for the B-side of the next English 12".

E.P.: What about your bad boys of rock n' roll image that's always being talked about?

Duff: You're the press, you're the ones who always talk about it!

E.P.: How does the record company put up with you guys?

Axl: They like us, everything's cool with them. One of the guys at Geffen gave Slash a sledgehammer, a real fucking sledgehammer!

Slash: We did this interview and after it was over I was drunk, I pulled down my pants and pissed on the floor…

Axl: ...but he missed the floor and hit his pants!

Slash: Then we went to a party at Geffen...

Axl: Someone gave Slash a Peter Gabriel sledgehammer, a real one. Slash goes out in the parking lot and proceeds to throw it thru a Geffen window.

Slash: It wasn't a Geffen window, it was the building next door...which is worse...

Duff: Cause it says Geffen on this hammer.

E.P.: Who's Mike Clink? I've never heard of him.

Axl: He's a guy we met at The Rage.

Slash: He's the only guy who can possibly put up with us to do this album. He aged because of this record.

Axl: He went to the doctor and the doctor said you've gotta stop smoking... but he doesn't smoke.

E.P.: What are the band's goals?

Axl: We want to get to the top and realize that everybody else is there, too. I can't fucking wait to do the next record.

E.P.: How do you feel about all the bands in L.A. being signed right now?

Duff: Spend your money fast like we did.

E.P.: Are you guys hanging out with any famous females you'd like to mention and ruin their careers?

Slash: Me and vanity have been getting along really good.

Izzy: They cum and they go.

E.P.: Quite profound. Do you have any advice for bands that are starting out?

Slash: Do your fucking homework.

E. P.: Anything else?

Slash: One a bum...always a bum...